RUSSIA ANNEXED CRIMEA IN 2014 AS A RESPONSE TO THE “COUP” IN KYIV
Myth: Russia launched the annexation of Crimea as a response to the “coup” in Kyiv.
Fact: Russia planned the annexation of Crimea long before the Revolution of Dignity. According to the Russian officials, the so-called “Crimean Operation” started on Feb 20, 2014. The Ukrainian dictator Viktor Yanukovich fled from Ukraine to Russia on Feb 22, 2014. It means that Vladimir Putin launched the military operation while Yanukovich was still an acting president of Ukraine.
In addition, such large-scale operations usually require months of preparation: conducting reconnaissance, military planning, stockpiling resources and weaponry, and accumulating personnel and vehicles – since Crimea is not a single city, but a separate region of Ukraine as large as 27.000 square kilometers (10.000 square miles). It means that the plan to occupy Ukrainian Crimea has been prepared by Russian command long before the Revolution of Dignity took place.